Whitbread Beer Company has restructured its in-house PR across its
range of beer brands, which include Heineken and Stella Artois, with the
appointment of a brand communications director.
Phil Rumbol, currently marketing manager for Heineken, takes over in the
new role, and will be responsible for sponsorship, press, PR and new
media initiatives.
Among the other brands he will be overseeing are Murphy’s, Bass Ice,
Rolling Rock and newly launched spirit mixers Source and Volsk.
Rumbol said: ’My new role reflects the importance of developing new
communication initiatives which fall outside traditional advertising and
promotions.’ He will support individual brand marketing teams, ensuring
best value in handling new media forms such as digital TV.
The new position commences in January, reporting to marketing and sales
director Stewart Gilliland. Rumbol will lead a team of five.
He has been with the company for more than two years and joined from
food multinational Kraft Jacobs Suchard.
Cohn and Wolfe handles Whitbread’s corporate and trade PR, while each
brand employs an external agency. Larkspur Communications handles
Murphy’s, and Communique PR handles Volsk.
Mandy MacLeod, currently the company’s most senior PR manager. will
report to Rumbol from January.
Corporate PR is handled by parent company Whitbread PLC’s corporate
affairs director David Reed.
